CODING: Words stricken are deletions; words underlined are additions.
SENATE AMENDMENT
Bill No. SB 72
Amendment No. ___ Barcode 273290
CHAMBER ACTION
Senate House
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11 Senator Diaz de la Portilla moved the following amendment:
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13 Senate Amendment (with title amendment)
14 Delete everything after the enacting clause
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16 and insert:
17 Section 1. The facts stated in the preamble to this
18 act are found and declared to be true.
19 Section 2. The Lee County School Board is authorized
20 and directed to appropriate from funds not otherwise
21 appropriated, and to draw a warrant in the amount of $75,000,
22 which amount includes statutory attorney's fees and costs,
23 payable to Michelle Darna and Jacob Darna, legal guardians of
24 Jacob P. Darna, to be placed in the guardianship account of
25 Jacob P. Darna to compensate him for injuries and damages
26 sustained as a result of the negligence of the Lee County
27 School Board. Upon the death of Jacob P. Darna, any balance of
28 the $75,000 remaining in the guardianship account shall revert
29 to the Lee County School Board. It is the intent of the
30 Legislature that no funds exceeding $75,000 appropriated by
31 this act be subsequently spent, or any obligation thereof be
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SENATE AMENDMENT
Bill No. SB 72
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1 subsequently incurred by the guardian, without prior order of
2 the circuit court.
3 Section 3. This act shall take effect upon becoming a
4 law.
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7 ================ T I T L E A M E N D M E N T ===============
8 And the title is amended as follows:
9 Delete everything before the enacting clause
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11 and insert:
12 A bill to be entitled
13 An act relating to Lee County; providing for
14 the relief of Jacob P. Darna, a minor, for
15 injuries sustained as a result of the
16 negligence of the Lee County School Board;
17 providing an effective date.
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19 WHEREAS, on May 23, 1995, Jacob P. Darna was a
20 10-year-old fifth-grade student who accompanied his elementary
21 school class on an orientation trip to Trafalgar Middle School
22 in Cape Coral, Lee County, Florida, and
23 WHEREAS, Jacob's elementary school had no bleachers and
24 he had little experience in walking on bleachers, and
25 WHEREAS, the bleachers at the Trafalgar Middle School
26 gymnasium have lines on them indicating that the occupancy
27 level should be 1 person per set of lines; however, the
28 teachers did not sit the students according to the occupancy
29 levels, and, in some instances, the teachers admitted that
30 they "packed the kids in there," and
31 WHEREAS, the bleachers were "pullout" bleachers and had
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SENATE AMENDMENT
Bill No. SB 72
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1 no aisles to walk down, although there were metal railings at
2 each end to ensure that the children would not fall off the
3 sides, and
4 WHEREAS, upon completion of the program, the children
5 did not receive specific instruction from the teachers to walk
6 to the end of the rows before descending so they proceeded
7 down the seats en masse in an unstructured and unsupervised
8 manner, and
9 WHEREAS, Jacob P. Darna, upon reaching the row of seats
10 closest to the gymnasium floor, felt a push from the crowd
11 behind him and fell to the ground, landing on his knee and
12 hip, and
13 WHEREAS, Jacob was transported from the accident scene
14 by emergency medical services personnel and was taken to Cape
15 Coral Hospital, and subsequently transferred to Lee Memorial
16 Hospital, and
17 WHEREAS, it was determined that Jacob P. Darna suffered
18 a Grade III slipped capital femoral epiphysis of his left hip,
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20 WHEREAS, surgery was immediately performed on Jacob
21 Darna and pins and screws were placed in his hip, and
22 WHEREAS, following the surgery, Jacob was left with a
23 significant limp and will continue to suffer with a limp the
24 rest of his life and has been advised by his doctors that he
25 will need a full-hip replacement in the future, and
26 WHEREAS, as a result of his injury and resulting
27 surgeries, Jacob P. Darna had to undergo further surgery to
28 his non-injured leg to shorten it in an effort to compensate
29 for the difference in the length of his two legs, and
30 WHEREAS, Jacob P. Darna's medical bills totaled
31 $32,100.91, and the Lee County School Board was given the
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SENATE AMENDMENT
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1 opportunity to settle this matter for $20,000, based upon an
2 offer of judgment, but the highest offer the board made was
3 $5,000, and
4 WHEREAS, the matter went to a jury trial and Jacob P.
5 Darna was awarded $268,750, and, as of June 13, 2001, the
6 school board had not appealed the judgment, but verbally
7 indicated that it will pay the amount it owes under section
8 768.28, Florida Statutes, and
9 WHEREAS, the claimant and the Lee County School Board
10 have agreed to a settlement of the claim in the amount of
11 $75,000, and
12 WHEREAS, after payment of the amount paid under section
13 768.28, Florida Statutes, the remaining excess-judgment amount
14 will be $75,000, NOW, THEREFORE,
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